Glee Club: New Beginnings For New Members
by ryleyjennoist
Summary: What if Marley and Ryder both entered McKinley High as new students on the same day and willingly auditioned to be in the Glee Club? What if they met each other first and auditioned together? Just a story that I thought of, and because I love Ryley!
1. Chapter 1

Marley bit her lip as she walked through the doors of McKinley High. This had been the third time she had switched schools in the past month. Her mother had said this would be their last time moving until she graduated, but Marley doubt that. Ever since her mother had started working as a lunch lady in the schools Marley attended, people had started to make fun of her mother, calling her a "fatass" and "faggot" which led to bullying towards Marley as well. Even though Marley was perfectly skinny, people would say she would inherit the "fat gene" of her mother and eventually end up like her mother as well. Marley started to develop anxiety issues which led to her mother transferring schools for her ever since.

"Hello Ms. Marley Rose."

Marley turned around to see Principal Figgins whom she met while registering for her sophomore year.

"This is your schedule," he said while handing her a sheet of paper. "First period doesn't start until eight which gives you an hour to roam the halls or do whatever you please on school grounds. Welcome to McKinley."

"Thank you," I replied.

He left my mom and I in the office.

"Have a good day sweetie. I'll see you during lunch," Millie, her mother, told her.

"Ok mom."

Ryder had been switching schools ever since grade school. Academics had always been difficult for him. Reading was the hardest. He could never execute a sentence perfectly and was told that he read like a fourth grader. Sports was his go to activity to clear his mind. Ryder strode through the doors of McKinley with no doubt that he'd transfer school in the middle of the term due to his horrific grades. He's had multiple tutors, a failing in getting Ryder to read successfully or comfortably. His parents had said they would be staying in Lima for a while, but Ryder wouldn't believe it.

"Ryder Lynn, Welcome to McKinley High."

Principal Figgins, who Ryder had met a week before handed him his schedule and shook his hand.

"You have one hour before classes start, so you just look around and get comfortable with your surroundings. McKinley High will be glad to have you in its sophomore year," he said and walked away promptly.

Ryder nodded and started heading down the halls getting ready to start anew.

Marley headed to her locker first to put away her things.

"1298, 1299, 1300, 1301,"

Marley opened up her locker and took her bag and stuffed it inside the small space and took a look at her schedule.

"Math first. Really?" Marley muttered to herself.

She took out her math book and notebook from her bag and continued to roam the halls.

Oomph!

Marley hit a hard surface and fell backwards onto the ground.

"I'm sorry I didn't see you," a deep voice exclaimed.

Marley looked up to see a guy who was wearing a striped shirt with brown eyes and brown hair that was cut in an old school Bieber style.

"Um... it's ok. I wasn't looking either. I'm kind of new here, so yeah," Marley replied.

"Yeah, I'm new too. I'm Ryder Lynn," Ryder said.

"Um, I'm Marley Rose," she answered.

Ryder looked down at his schedule and squinted. He proceeded to look around and then suddenly tured back to Marley.

"Do you know where locker 1302 is?" he asked nervously.

"Yeah, follow me," Marley said.

Marley led Ryder to where she was five minutes ago.

"Hi neighbor," Marley smiled brightly.


	2. Chapter 2

Ryder had never seen a girl so beautiful with a perfect shade of brunette colored hair curled and stunning blue eyes which made him me under her gaze. She was wearing a newsboy cap that made her look so cute and innocent with a long dress and denim jacket over it. Her flats just added to her seemingly idea of innocence.

After they shared a short conversation, Ryder learned that her name was Marley Rose. He thought to himself that her name fit her perfectly considering her flowery and shy personality. She was also as beautiful as a rose. The name Marley also reminded Ryder of sort of a laid-back, go with the flow type of girl. While Marley was leading him to his locker, Ryder couldn't help but think about getting to know the real Marley Rose more; she seemed to intrigue him.

"Hi neighbor."

Ryder snapped out of his thoughts and looked at Marley to see her smiling brightly at him. He immediately tried to think of ideas to make her smile like that more often because her smiled reminded him of all the good in life-even though it sounded immensely cheesy and cliché.

"So everyday I get to see your beautiful face-" Ryder blurted out before stopping his words abruptly. "Um..."

"Um, thanks. No one has ever called me beautiful before," Marley said smiling nervously.

"I can't imagine why they wouldn't," Ryder added smiling nervously as well.

Marley thought Ryder was charming, nice, and handsome. He even called her beautiful. _Well he doesn't know my mom yet. _She pushed the thought to the back of her mind and stood awkwardly while Ryder put his bag away then look at his schedule.

"What do you have for first period?" Ryder asked.

"Math," she replied.

"Me too," he smiled. "Um... do you mind if I walk you down there later?"

_Marley don't blow it. Ryder's really cute and nice, all the while being the first boy to call you beautiful. You don't get that often._

"Sure," Marley replied biting her lip.

Ryder couldn't help but mentally cheer and do one of his end zone dances in his head. _Ryder if you screw up, you'll be missing out on one of the prettiest, cutest, and coolest girl in McKinley High. Don't blow it. _

"So we still have half an hour. What do you want to do Ryder?" Marley asked.

"I saw a bulletin board across the office in the hall with a bunch of sign up sheets. I think they're for the clubs at this school. Do you wanna join any?" Ryder asked.

"Um, I don't have many talents," Marley stated shyly.

Marley debated whether or not she should tell Ryder that she loved singing. No one ever knew that about her except her mom. Her only friend from her last school never even found out her last name, so who was she to tell. Ryder seemed like a good guy, so why not?

"I'm sure that's not true," Ryder argued.

"Well," Marley started. "I kind of have this silly dream that I'll be a recording artist with hits on the radio, but I don't even sing that good."

Ryder didn't know Marley would have told him something that personal, so he decided to share with her the one thing that no one knew about him. Ryder would always sing in the shower. At his old school when he made the football team, he stayed back and kept practicing drills, so he could be the last one to shower just to sing. If he sang in the shower at home, his dad would make him take singing lessons to get perfect since his dad knew that grades wouldn't help him succeed in life, music would.

"You're probably the best singer in this school," Ryder smirked.

"You haven't even heard me sing yet," Marley replied.

"But I will, won't I?" Ryder asked.

"We just met," Marley countered. "I know nothing personal about you."

Ryder was going to do it. He was going to pour out his heart and soul just to witness the passion of Marley and her voice. If he wanted to know more about Marley, he would have to get naked emotionally. Marley's different, he knew that. That's what made her Marley Rose.

**A/N: Second chapter everyone! School's almost starting for me on Monday, so I won't be updating often, but I really like this story! I have some other Ryley themed ideas for stories, so I'll probably post a poll on my page to see which one I should start next or maybe even post the ideas at the end of one of these chapters. Well I'm probably gonna write and upload another chapter later today, so get ready for some more Ryley and soon-to-come the other characters of Glee! Watch out for Jake and Kitty! Oh and before I forget, Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any of the characters, only the plot do I own. Thank you for reading, reviewing, following, and making my story one of your favorites! Review for criticism or encouraging words if you can!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own Glee of the characters from the show. I own only the plot.**

Marley had never sang a song for someone before. Her mother had only heard her sing in the shower then confronted her about it. Marley had told her that it was just a silly thing she liked to do in the shower while Millie claimed there was "magic" in her throat. Marley shrugged it off since she knew many other people had much better voices.

After she stopped thinking about her singing voice, Marley and Ryder had reached the board. There were sign up sheets for every club you could think of, chess, anime, AV, honor society, football, basketball, and so much more. There was one club that caught her eye though.

_Audition for a spot in this show choir: New Directions! The glee club has been Regionals Champions for many consecutive years. If you like to sing or perform or even both, sign up today!_

"Hey Marley," Ryder started. "I think I'm gonna sign up for football. What about you?"

Marley smiled at Ryder and looked back at the sign up sheet for the glee club. _Aren't gleeks unpopular? What do you have to lose? You've gone through the torture before. Nothing you can't handle. Plus you can finally have a judge on your voice to see if you're good enough to be at least in the top 100. Just try! It'll be fun!_

"Um, glee club looks interesting," Marley shared with Ryder nervously.

Ryder looked towards to Marley's direction to see a sign up sheet for a glee club.

"You would definitely get in Marls!" Ryder exclaimed.

"Marls?" Marley asked.

"Um, yeah," Ryder blushed. "I kind of just made up that nickname for you. I think it suites you, and it's kind of cute."

Marley couldn't help but blush as well.

"Um, thanks," she said.

Ryder looked back at the sign up sheet. He reminded himself that he would have to share everything with Marley, including his second passion that no one knew about, singing.

Ryder took the pencil attached to the clipboard hanging on the wall and wrote 'Marley Rose' and 'Ryder Lynn' in messy handwriting on to the glee audition sheet.

"Now we're both signed up," Ryder smiled sweetly at Marley.

"You sing?" Marley asked incredulously.

"You don't know anything personal about me right?" Ryder smirked. "Now you do."

Ryder then bravely, with all of the courage and confidence he didn't usually possess, took Marley's hand in his while waling down to the hall to the classes.

"Now let's get to Math," Ryder said.

Marley couldn't believe a guy as sweet and cute like Ryder who played football could sing! Marley suddenly held her breath as she felt Ryder's warm hand slip into her's while he led her to their math class. They both entered as soon as the bell rang. _Right on time._

Marley saw that the teacher was a youngish woman, probably in her early thirties, settle down the class.

"Now class. We have two new students attending McKinley High for the second term. This is Marley Rose and Ryder Lynn," the teacher announced.

Marley and Ryder both raise their hands to wave a small greeting before both turn back to the teacher for their seating arrangements.

"Now I'm Mrs. Jennoist, and you two are lucky enough to have seats in the back corner, right next to each other. The rules I have in this class are simple, no talking, texting, interrupting, socializing, sleeping, eating, or playing in this class room understood?" Mrs. Jennoist said.

"Understood," Ryder and Marley replied.

They both, still unaware that they were still holding hands, walked towards the back corner of the room with the two empty seats squeezed in this classroom of about forty people. They both put their math books down on the table and sat down in their seats. They timidly pulled away their hands and got out a pencil and sheet of paper like it said on the board and listened to Mrs. Jennoist drone one and on about graphing inequalities.

After a few minutes, Marley saw something fly onto her desk. She looked at the object, a little airplane, and opened it up. It was a note.

_Hey Marley ;) -Ryder_

Marley smiled and looked up at Ryder and caught his deep chocolatey brown eyes. _Almost kind of like doe eyes. _She smiled at him and he smiled back. Ryder motioned for Marley to write back into the airplane, so she did.

_What are you doing? :) -Marley_

Marley then proceeded to fold the airplane back up and throw it at Ryder while Mrs. Jennoist was writing on the board.

Ryder caught the airplane and opened it up smiling and quickly scribbling back onto the paper in his scrawl to reply to Marley.

_Writing to one of the sweetest girls ever ;D -Ryder_

Ryder then folded up the airplane and sent it through the air to Marley. She opened it up and read through it quickly, looking up at Ryder and smiling brightly, both blushing and looking away from each other. Ryder though looked back smiling timidly to see Marley folding the airplane and stuffing it inside her math book then focusing back onto the board.

Ryder decided it was time to focus as well considering he has to get an average of a B- by the end of the year to stay in McKinley. He decided that there's finally a reason to get his grades up. Not for his Ph. D dad who expects the most in everyone, not for his though sweet but overbearing mother, but for the sweetest, kindest, most beautiful girl he's ever seen- though cheesy and cliché as always, for Marley Rose.

**A/N: Told you I was going to update quick! Cute conversation with Marley and Ryder right? Ryder's so sweet! Fangirl moment! So now Marley and Ryder are going to audition for the New Directions. Excited? XD More to come really soon! Review if you liked it! Thanks for reading! :D**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or the characters. I own only the plot.**

The bell rang to signal lunch time. Marley and Ryder surprisingly had the same classes all morning and were headed to their lockers to get their lunch. To and from their classes, Ryder managed to grab Marley's hand to walk to each class and Marley didn't mind one bit. Now heading to the cafeteria, they still grasp hands and sit down at a table in a secluded area where no one sat for some reason. They sat across each other, so they let go of their entwined hands though not willingly to let go.

Marley unpacks her lunch to a homemade PB&J and a small carton of milk her mother packed from the school's shipping since she was in the free lunch program since her mom worked as a lunch lady. Ryder unpacks a homemade turkey, lettuce, and tomato sub with packets of mayo and a bottle of an energy drink.

"So, do you like our classes?" Marley asked Ryder.

"Um, I guess. I kind of only enjoy them since you're there," Ryder shrugged.

Marley blushed. _How can he be so forward, and I be so nervous?_ Marley decided to take a step forward and lean towards Ryder, touching his arm.

"You are really sweet," Marley commented timidly.

Ryder couldn't believe it. Marley Rose, the girl who he has started to care for is now touching his arm. Too bad it only lasted for five seconds. Ryder wanted to talk more and be closer to Marley, so he decided to ask her something now while they're alone.

"Um, do you wanna audition for the glee club together?" Ryder asked. "Only if you want to."

"Sure," Marley replied smiling.

"Can I have your number?" Ryder asked nervously.

If someone had told Marley she would have made a friend and gotten their phone number, which was a guy's, on the fist day to McKinley High, she would've laughed in their faces. How interesting this day is.

They switched numbers and ate in comfortable silence until the bell rang which meant lunch was over and now it's free period. You can go anywhere on the school grounds for the next hour. Ryder and Marley approached their lockers and put their lunches away.

"Oh shoot!" Ryder suddenly said.

"What?" Marley exclaimed.

"I forgot that the football tryouts were going to be held during free period today! I was thinking about glee auditions next week and totally forgot about football," Ryder said. "Will you go with me and cheer me on during tryouts? It's only for half an hour, and the other half of free period, I'll do whatever you want."

Marley thought about this. _More Ryder, the closer we get. Seems fair. Oh and sweaty Ryder bonus. I'm definitely in._

"Ok. Don't blow it, as my mom says," Marley giggled and took Ryder's hand as he dragged her down to the football field.

Ryder had already dropped Marley off in the empty stands right in front where the football tryouts were to be held, and he left to go change into gear in the locker room. Ryder ran up to the coach which told him to start stretching. When he glanced up in the stands and saw Marley, he waved and started doing squats, so she would laugh. _Mission accomplished. _He admired her laugh, then he tod the coach he wanted to tryout for wide receiver. The current quarterback threw Ryder a few passes and practiced a few plays with Ryder, including a 'Hail Mary' which was when the quarterback threw Ryder a very long pass. The ball was now in the air above the touchdown zone, right in the corner. Ryder lunged for it last second and his dive earned his his caught ball.

"Go Ryder!" Marley cheered.

Ryder jumped up and started doing his signature end zone dance, ending in the worm, causing Marley to laugh hysterically.

"Ryder Lynn!" Coach Bieste shouted.

Ryder dusted himself off and ran towards her.

"Yes," he said.

"You'll get your jerseys next week. Congratulations! You're now McKinley's new wide receiver. Practice is every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon right after school for an hour. You are allowed to use the football field for whatever purpose now until football season is over. You're tryout was amazing. Don't miss practice next week." Coach Bieste said.

"Thank you! You won't regret accepting me on the team," Ryder said and jumped in delight.

Marley watched Ryder happily celebrating his acceptance and watched him stride towards her up the steps on the stands.

"I made it," Ryder states proudly.

Marley hugs Ryder and Ryder immediately reciprocates the action.

"I knew you would," Marley said.

They let go and Ryder sits down next to Marley.

"Well, I'm gonna take a quick shower and we can go wherever you'd like. Ok?" Ryder asks.

"Ok," Marley smiles as they hug once more, and Ryder goes to the locker room.

Marley can only think one thing.

_Ryder Lynn is not like the others. He won't break my heart before he gets it._

**A/N: Chapter four! I love this story! Three chapters uploaded in one day?! Dang, I'm good! No, I'm kidding. This won't happen often with school starting and stuff, but I hope you like what I have so far. I'm gonna write a lot of chapters. This will most definitely be a very long multi-chapter story! I hope you like them! Keep reading and reviewing! Thanks :D **


	5. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee of the characters. I own only the plot.**

Classes passed by quickly in the afternoon, and though Marley and Ryder didn't have the rest of their classes all perfectly matched, the classes were simple enough.

_Ring_

Marley and Ryder excited their classes. Marley left Chorus and Ryder left Art. They walked towards their lockers and took out their books and stuffed them into their own bags.

"So, was the first day as awesome as you thought they would be?" Ryder smirked.

"Yeah," Marley answered. "For once."

"I know exactly how you feel," Ryder commented.

They grasp hands, as that had seemed to be a routine for them now, and walked out the doors of McKinley High.

"So how are you going home?" Ryder asked.

"Um, my mom was supposed to pick me up, but I think she's staying after for a while, so she told me to walk home," Marley muttered.

"How far do you have to walk?" Ryder asked once again.

"Far," Marley replied scoffing.

Ryder chuckled. He squeezed Marley hand trying to comfort her.

"I'll give you a ride," he said and led her towards the parking lot.

"You have your license?" Marley asked.

"Yeah. I just got it," Ryder replied proudly.

They continued walking towards the cars until they reached a dirty, worn-out pick-up truck.

"There's my baby," Ryder said while opening up the door for Marley.

"I knew you were one of those guys," Marley commented giggling.

"Like what?" Ryder asked.

He climbed over the back of the truck to get to the driver's seat quickly and started the engine.

"Like a guy who calls their car a girl," Marley said.

"Oh, well. I really like this car. I just feel comfortable in here. It's like my second home," Ryder tried to describe.

They sat in comfortable silence once again until Marley turned on the radio while Ryder was about to turn out of the school's parking lot. Marley starts singing along softly.

_The day we met_

_Frozen I held my breath_

_Right from the start_

_I knew that I found the home for my heart_

_Beats fast_

_Colors and promises_

_All of my doubt _

_Suddenly goes away somehow_

_One step closer_

Ryder turns the knob for the volume to make it slightly louder and joins in on the chorus, singing quietly.

_I have died everyday _

_Waiting for you_

_Darling don't be afraid_

_I have loved you for a thousand years_

_I'll love you for a thousand more_

Marley turns the radio down and immediately looks at Ryder.

"You sing amazingly," Marley stated.

"No, I think your voice is melodious," Ryder countered while still staring at the stoplight.

Marley smiles to herself and blushes slightly.

"Thanks Ry," Marley said.

"Ry, huh? I like that," Ryder smiles and turns to look at Marley since the stoplight was still at the color red.

"Um, sorry that kind of slipped out," Marley said quickly.

"No problem Marls. Do you mind if I took you to my house? You didn't tell me your address, but I think it would be cool if we do our homework together. We are in a lot of classes together," Ryder tried to explain.

Marley thought about the idea. _Going over to a boy's house on the first day school? Well Ryder's sweet, kind, and caring. Plus, he's cute. I cannot deny that. But what'll my mom think?_

"Um, I have to text my mom first," Marley said.

"Oh, ok," Ryder responded.

_Ryder, what are you thinking? Why didn't you ask Marley for her address first? Now she has to ask her mom to go over a dude's house. I'm gonna have a bad first impression! Well, if Marley likes me, as a friend of course, then her mom would have to right? Isn't she close to her mom?_

"Marls?" Ryder asked.

"Yeah Ry?" Marley replied.

"Are you close to your mom?" Ryder asked.

"Yeah," Marley said. "Ever since..."

Marley didn't know whether or not to mention her father. It might've been a big part of her life, but she only met Ryder today. _Though we're close, I can't trust people easily. That's what caused my heart to break in the first place. Looking for someone to pick up the pieces has to take time. It takes time to heal._

Ryder was thinking about Marley's close relationship with her mother. Ever since what? Ryder decided not to push the issue. _If Marley has trust issues, I'll be there to catch her if she falls._

"You don't have to say anything Marls. I don't wanna push you into an uncomfortable spot. Like you said. We both have personal stuff we still haven't told each other yet. Hell, we just met this morning, but I can wait," Ryder said comfortably. "You can just text your mom."

"Thanks Ry," Marley said.

She was touched by Ryder's understanding tone. _No one gets it._ She used to tell herself that, but Ryder sounded like he had went through crap too. _Like he understood me._ She decided to do the something risky. She's never felt this close to a person that wasn't her family, but Ryder was different like she said. She leaned forward towards him while he parked the car.

"So Marley, here we are-" Ryder started.

She kissed him.


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or the characters on the show. I own only the plot.**

Ryder couldn't believe it. Marley Rose just kissed him, well on the cheek, but that still counts. Ryder wanted so badly to grab her face and kiss her senseless, but by the time he had recovered from the shock of Marley's kiss, she was out the door, walking away from Ryder's house. Ryder ran out of his pick-up and shouted her name.

"Marls! Wait up!" Ryder screamed.

He ran to where Marley was, but she ignored him and kept walking. When Ryder reached Marley he grabbed her arm and spun her around to face him.

"Marls," Ryder started until he saw Marley's tear-stained cheeks. "What's wrong?"

Marley couldn't think straight. She just kissed her first real friend she had ever made, so her new friendship is now ruined. She decided it was best if she just left and got transferred to a new school.

"You know what's wrong?" Marley asked.

"Marls, that's what I asked you," Ryder said calmly.

Ryder tried his best to soothe Marley's sniffles because he had never dealt with making a girl cry. He hated seeing people cry.

"What's wrong is that I just kissed my first real friend! God, I screw everything up! I'm just a loner fatass who nobody cares about," Marley exclaimed.

Marley couldn't deal with the pressure. Any pressure. She just wanted to curl into a ball and wallow away in her own tears. She continued down the sidewalk.

"Marley! I'll always be your friend. Always. Nothing will change that," Ryder countered.

Boom

Little rain drops started to fall from the sky.

"Marley! You're gonna get sick! Come on! I'll take you inside. Please! You did nothing wrong! You're beautiful! Don't let anyone tell you otherwise..." Ryder tried one last time.

Marley stopped in her tracks. There he goes with the B word again. She turned around to see him with his head hung, slowly walking away. She sighed and ran up to him engulfing him in her arms.

"Thanks Ry," Marley said.

"Anything for you Marls," Ryder said and kissed her on the cheek. "Now let's get inside before it starts pouring."

Before Ryder can notice the blush forming on Marley's cheeks, he picks her up by her legs, giving her a piggy back ride, all the way to his front door. Ryder then lets her down gently and slips his hand into his pocket, reaching for his key and opening the door.

Marley walked in astounded. Outside the house looked regular, but on the inside it was huge. You could tell that the Lynn's were wealthy by the elegance in the room from the glass sculptures, to the paint on the walls.

"Woah," Marley said after examining the house.

"Yeah..." Ryder started. "Are you hungry? I have my own pantry of snacks since my parents aren't laid-back enough to eat snacks."

"Sure," Marley said.

"You can go upstairs to my room first. It's on the second floor, last room on the left," Ryder told her.

Ryder grabbed a plate and filled it with tortilla chips and guacamole, salsa, and cheese dip. He then ran up the stairs into his room to see her on his bed looking around as if it was a foreign world she had just entered.

"Do you like my poster?" Ryder smirked.

Marley's eyes landed above Ryder's bed frame to see a Grease poster. It looked vintage, as if his grandparents gave him it. She examined it closer to see a signature, two actually.

"Oh my gosh! You have the stars signatures?" Marley exclaimed.

"Yeah," Ryder said. "After my grandad gave me that poster, I vowed to star as Danny Zuko to repay him for the poster. It's kind of stupid but-"

"I think that's sweet," Marley told him and gave him a hug.

Ryder quickly reciprocated and hugged Marley as well. He let her head fall into his chest and stroked her hair. Her hair smelled like strawberries. He liked strawberries. They stayed together for a few seconds until both realized they've been home for an hour and still didn't complete the hill of homework they received on the first day.

After completing most of the assigned homework and eating most of the chips, Marley yawned.

"Hey Ry?" Marley asked.

"Yeah Marls?" Ryder answered.

"What time is it?" she asked.

"Um..." Ryder looked at his digital clock on his bedside drawer. "A little passed five thirty. Why?"

Marley panicked. Her mom had told her to be home by six to eat dinner.

"I have to get home for dinner by six! I have to leave!" Marley exclaimed.

Marley packed her things in a matter of seconds and ran down the stairs. Ryder soon followed her and offered her a ride. She gladly accepted and the pair rushed out to the truck while Marley told Ryder where to drive to get to her house. When they arrived, Ryder, like a gentleman, escorted Marley out of the passengers seat and onto her porch.

"That was fun," Ryder commented.

"Yeah," Marley nodded.

"We... should do that again sometime," Ryder said. "I actually understood some of that reading lesson you helped me with."

"No problem," Marley smiled. "Well, I'll see you at school tomorrow."

Ryder quickly stopped her as she was about to go into her house.

"Um, my parents are out on a business trip, and all the leftovers are slices of pizza," Ryder started. "Do you think I can join you and your mom for dinner?"

Marley thought this over quickly. _Ryder was nice, charming, caring, and easy on the eyes. Why not? _

"Sure. My mom won't mind," Marley said. "Come inside."

And come inside he did.

**A/N: I think I'll update every Saturday now, but if I have time, then I'll update before that! Thanks for reading and reviewing! :D**


	7. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I don't Glee of any of the characters on the show. I own only the plot. I also do not own Spongebob Squarepants. ;)**

Marley invited Ryder into her house.

"Mom! I'm home," Marley shouted.

"I'm in the kitchen dear," Millie answered.

Marley led Ryder towards the kitchen, and she walked over to Millie and gave her a big hug and kiss. That was when Millie saw Ryder.

"Who is this young man?" Millie asked her daughter.

Ryder recognized Millie from somewhere. The cafeteria! That's where he knew he saw her.

"Mrs. Rose?" Ryder asked.

"Marley this young man is a keeper. Only reason why I give him twice the amount of meatballs on Meatball Day," Millie gushed.

Marley and Ryder had a blush tint their cheeks. Marley thought that Ryder would have left the house right when he saw her mother, but Ryder did the exact opposite. Ryder and her mother had gone into a deep conversation about the kind of cheese the school uses for the spaghetti versus the one used for the burgers and subs.

"Um, mom?" Marley cut off her mom and Ryder.

"Yes, sweetie?" Millie answered.

"Can Ryder stay for dinner? He doesn't really have any food at his house," Marley asked timidly.

"Of course! Any friend of Marley's is a friend of mine," Millie announced. "Ryder, dear. Could you help Marley set the table? The table cloth is in the basement."

Marley led Ryder towards the basement.

"That was weird," Marley stated walking down the stairs.

"Your mom is cool," Ryder said. "Definitely the coolest lunch lady I've ever met."

Ryder chuckled and helped Marley carry the dishes and silverware while Marley carried the table cloth upstairs.

"Only if other people thought that too," Marley muttered and before Ryder could say anything, rushed up to the kitchen once more.

Marley and Ryder set the table while Millie poured the bowls of spaghetti, remembering to add twice the regular amount of meatballs for Ryder and adding only one meatball for Marley.

Ryder and Marley sat next to each other facing Millie across from them.

"Let's eat," Ryder announced.

Marley and Millie chuckled, and they ate their spaghetti in comfortable silence. Soon enough Marley excused herself to use the restroom while left Ryder and Millie alone.

"Ryder," Millie called.

"Yes, Mrs. Rose?" Ryder asked.

"Call me Millie," Millie started. "Don't go breaking my Marley's heart. She's gone through too much to suffer another heartbreak."

Millie looked at Ryder with pleading eyes while Ryder looked at her confused.

"What happened to Marl-" Ryder started before Marley approached the table again.

"So what are we talking about," Marley asked.

"Oh, just the classes you and Ryder have together at school," Millie said. "Isn't that right Ryder?"

Ryder saw the look in Millie's eyes. The desperation and sadness just pouring out of the sea blue eyes.

"Yep," Ryder answered.

The rest of the dinner was filled with jokes and stories about Marley's childhood. Soon enough, Ryder had to get home.

"Thank you for the dinner Millie," Ryder said. "Thanks Marls."

Ryder smiled, and Marley smiled back. Ryder went to shake Millie's hand then proceeded to hug Marley.

"I'll walk you out," Marley said while Millie set the table.

Marley and Ryder walk out the door onto Marley's porch and stood there looking at the empty street.

"Um, Marls," Ryder said.

"Yeah?" Marley asked.

"Since we have glee club auditions on Monday afternoon, do you want to practice auditioning at my house tomorrow?" Ryder asked. "It's gonna be Saturday anyways."

Marley smiled and nodded her head.

"Sure," Marley smiled.

They hugged. Ryder wrapped his arms around Marley's waist, as Marley wrapped her arms around Ryder's neck. They stood there for seconds in each others embrace, and Ryder kissed Marley's cheek.

"I'll see you tomorrow Marls," Ryder said quickly and went into this truck driving away from the Rose's residence.

Marley stood there dumbfounded. _I could get used to that. _With that thought, Marley walked back into her house with an idiotic smile spread across her face.

The next morning Ryder woke up he smiled. His dream was wonderful.

"_Marls, look up," Ryder told her. "Do you see it?"_

"_What? All I see is a star,"Marley said._

"_Yeah, it's for you," Ryder said grasping her hand._

_Ryder took out a certificate and gave it to Marley._

"_You named a star after me?" Marley gasped._

"_I thought about that, but there's already a star named Marley Rose," Ryder said._

_Marley let one tear escape her eye, and she leaned forward to kiss Ryder. They kissed for a minute until Ryder's alarm went off._

Ryder decided to send Marley a good morning text and remind her to rehearse together.

_Morning Marls ;) -Ryder_

The next morning Marley woke up to a beep. She got a text. _Who would send me a text at seven a.m. on a Saturday morning? _Marley got her phone an looked at the screen to see Ryder's text. She smiled. _Of course._

_Seven in the morning. Really? :p -Marley_

Ryder heard his text tone go off and immediately ran back into his room, rinse still inside his mouth. He read the text and replied.

_Just reminding you that I'll pick you up at ten to rehearse for the auditions :) -Ryder_

Marley heard the beep again and read Ryder's text. She responded then went to the bathroom.

_Ok Ry :) -Marley_

Ryder read Marley's text and went downstairs to eat breakfast. He turn on the TV to watch some Saturday morning cartoons, and sure enough there was Spongebob Squarepants before him. Ryder chuckled at Spongebob's stupidity and finished off his bowl of cereal. He decided to get ready for Marley since time had passed so quickly; it was already nine.

Ryder took a quick shower, conditioning twice though, and picked out his lucky white v-neck t-shirt with his ripped blue jeans and favorite leather jacket. Ryder decided to try using this supposedly "expensive" deodorant his mother bought him when he turned sixteen, claiming it to be his scent. He didn't even know what that meant. He climbed into his pick up and drove towards Marley's house with every intention in the world to get to know her better. Nothing will stop him from it.

**A/N: Isn't Ryder sweet :) Let's see if Marley will let her guard down for Ryder next time... ;) Anyways, on my profile page, I have put up summaries for some Ryley stories I'm thinking about doing in November, and I would love for you to read them and answer my poll question to see which one I should start first. Thanks for reading and reviewing! Sorry that this is a little boring, but I promise this will get better! It's not even close to being finshed, so keep reading! Thanks for following and favoriting too! I read all of your review, so post them, so I can adjust my story if it needs fixing. If I made any spelling or grammar mistakes, sorry. My computer doesn't have a grammar checker, only a spell-check. Stay tuned!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or its characters. I own only the plot. **

Marley took the quickest shower she had ever taken in her life since Ryder lived about ten minutes away from her house. By the time she finished, she went into her room in her bathrobe to pick out a quick, cute outfit for Ryder to see her in.

_Wait, no. I can get used to cute, flirty, and shy Ryder, but all boys are no what they seem... I can't get hurt again._

Marley chose the blue sweater her mom made for her, a modest skirt, and her signature newsboy cap. After she put on her undergarments and skirt, she was about to slip on her sweater when she heard someone cough loudly.

"Shit!" a voice Marley had heard before said at her bedroom door.

Marley turned around Ryder as she covered her chest with her sweater.

"Ryder!" Marley shrieked. "What are you doing here?"

"Um, your mom let me in and said you were upstairs," Ryder blushed while her looked at her covered chest.

_Ry. Dude. Calm down. Stop looking at her body and get out of the damn room before you do something you'll regret._

"I'll just leave now," Ryder nervously spoke. "Um, yeah."

Marley just nodded and made sure the door was shut before she took the sweater off her chest and slipped it on quickly. She put on her newsboy cap, looked at the full length mirror, and added a spritz of her perfume. She grabbed her bag and left her room to find Ryder sitting outside her door of the opposite side of the wall.

"C'mon Ry," Marley blushed.

Ryder took a quick glance over Marley's choice of clothing.

_She's an innocent one isn't she? I like that. It's cute._

Ryder led her out to his truck and politely opened up the passenger seat door for her as she happily obliged. He then continued to approach the driver's seat and start the ignition. The ride contained an awkward silence, unlike the comfortable ones they were used to, until Ryder decided to break the thin ice they were currently on.

"So," Ryder started.

"Hm?" Marley muttered.

Ryder seemed d by transfixed Marley's actions. Every time she was nervous, she would hide behind her newsboy cap or occasionally her long brunette hair. When she was happy, her eyes would glow with blue sparkles and her sweet small smile that could make a grown man cry. When she was sad or angry, her eyes wouldn't have that sweet glow instead be replaced with a dark void of an ocean storm.

She was currently hiding behind her newsboy cap, but a slight tinged of pink placed on her cheeks didn't go unnoticed by Ryder.

He smirked.

"I didn't mean to barge in on you while you weren't... Um... decent," Ryder said.

"It's ok. I guess," Marley answered lamely.

Marley went back into her comfortable-ish position and muttered something she thought was incoherent.

"Sorry you had to witness the tragedy of my fat body."

Ryder had turned back to the wheel, but he didn't miss Marley's last sentence.

_Why would she call herself fat? She's skinny. Beautiful. Pretty. Cute. Perfect. Anymore adjectives needed? I shouldn't question her about though. If I want to get to know her, I got to take it slow. She seems like that she wouldn't wanna rush into anything. Plus, her mom said she's gotten hurt before... _

They drove back to Ryder's house and ended up in his room. Ryder was at his desk and Marley on his bed.

"So what song do you wanna do for auditions?" Marley asked Ryder.

"Um... I don't know," Ryder said. "I just want it to mean something. Like the lyrics are true to us and how we... feel."

Ryder blushed. Marley saw the tinge of pink on his cheeks.

_Could this mean something? Would he actually like a broken girl like me? He is really sweet to me. I just met him a couple of days ago though. Why am I even on his bed? But it's so comfy..._

"What songs do you... you know... have in mind?" Marley asked.

"Um... I think we should do _A Thousand Years by Christina Perri_," Ryder replied. "You sang it amazingly inside my truck while it was on the radio, and the amount of emotion in the song could help win over the members as well make it an amazing duet?"

_Does he really want to sing a love song for the auditions? Could I really put all my feelings on the line for this? I'm not even in love with him... __yet. Can he put his feelings into the song? Does he even have any feelings to put out?_

"Do you think we can convince the Glee club members that we can convey the deep... emotions of this song as a duet? This song has a lot of depth in the love department of musical industry," Marley said.

"That... sounded funnier in my head." [**See where I got that from? ;) ]**

Ryder chuckled.

_Even her jokes were cute. _

"It won't be too hard," Ryder whispered as he stepped closer to her now sitting side by side on the bed by her. "You're too easy to fall in love with."

And with that Marley inwardly gasped as Ryder started to lean forward slightly to test the environment out of Marley's friend zone. Involuntarily, Marley found herself leaning into him as well. Just awaiting for the moment where their lips would touch, the door to Ryder's bedroom suddenly opened.

"Mom!" A little boy about eight years old, Marley thought, shouted. "Ryder has a girl in his room, and the door's shut!"

Marley could literally see the heat rise within Ryder. He turned towards the door, still on the bed, and he whined.

"Ryan!" Ryder screamed. "Mom just left to a business meeting. She doesn't care about my life anyways."

After that, Ryder went up to his door and closed it then locked it.

_What does he mean about his mother not caring about his life? All mother's care about their childrens' lives. That's why they're mothers._

Marley quickly shook her head and glanced up towards Ryder.

"Who was that?" Marley asked.

"That was my brother Ryan," Ryder started. "He's eight years old."

"Aww!" Marley cooed. "He's so cute! He even is growing the old school Bieber cut like you!"

"Um, yeah. But he's annoying as hell," Ryder added.

They continued to talk about Ryder's brother before practicing for the audition. Marley searched through her phone to find a karaoke version of the song and hooked her phone up to Ryder's television to see the lyrics as well.

"Ready?" Ryder asked.

"Always," Marley smiled.

They rolled through the song perfectly until it ended with them nose to nose.

"Um," Marley coughed.

They backed away a few inches, but they bumped heads.

"Yeah," Ryder added.

They both burst out into fits of laughter onto Ryder's bed.

Eventually Marley's head was on Ryder's arm as they stared at Ryder's ceiling. Though there was nothing on the ceiling, you could see how it was painted by the lines in the paintbrush. Ryder carefully grasped Marley's hand and lay it on his chest while Marley snuggled into him a little more.

_If this wasn't perfect, what was?_

"Marls?" Ryder asked after a few minutes.

Marley turned her head up to glance up at him from his chin.

"Yeah?" Marley replied.

"After the first run, I already think we totally got this in the bag," Ryder commented.

"You got it dude," Marley replied as they bursts into fits of laughter once more.

Ryder knew he was one step closer to climbing Marley's walls, maybe even breaking them. _Would she ever let him in?_

_You're in for the ride of your life Marley Rose._


End file.
